Sanders Sides Shorts
by VampChippzRisesAgain
Summary: Little stories, inspired by one word for each, all compiled into this series. I hope you enjoy!
1. Nature Part 1

_/I own nothing, seriously. Enjoy!_

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"_**I just wanna watch the birds go by, from my handy foldable blue canvas throw.**_

_**I wanna watch them fly and fly; see them soaring up into the unknown.**_

_**But I'd feel just like a nerd, watching birds, watching me here all alone."**_

_~Birds (feat. Terrence Williams Jr.) from Ultimate Storytime_

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Roman loved nature.

You'd think that it would be more of Patton's thing, and that Roman would rather not have a dirt stain on his pristine clothes. Well, that's true, but the absolute inspiration one can glean from wildlife that Roman can't even _begin_ to describe it.

Plus, Patton was afraid of spiders, which were in their garden in the Mindspace. Roman had no idea why the little creatures were there, but they were. The fanciful side was only _slightly_ afraid of them, and even so he preferred to not kill the little arachnids.

But he digressed.

Nearly half of his inspiration came from his surroundings. He found that a boring office space in the Mind Palace would only stifle his creative whimsy, so off into the great unknown he went.

The results were more than he could _ever_ hope for.

Lush forests, bursting with life as newly formed dew glistened on the grass and leaves. Rivers, so clear that one could see straight to the bottom, gently washed over any rocks they came into contact with and reflected the sunlight almost as good as a diamond could. Mountains towered in the east, to the west being snow-covered plateaus that he could explore at anytime. The wildlife were friendly and accepting, managing to calm him down whenever Roman felt the other sides starting to grate on his nerves. A deer even let him pet her, the warmth that spread through him as an uncontrollable smile nearly split his face in half the result of such trust between human and animal. (He's also pretty sure that he saw a fairy at one point, but whatever it happened to be was gone after he blinked. He'll find out eventually, though.)

Despite the breathtaking scenery, Roman felt that something was missing.

As he settled down in a clearing with a rabbit nuzzling his hand, the other holding a book that he read aloud to the other animals that filtered in to hear his words, he realized what it was.

He was missing his dear friends to enjoy this experience with.

Then again, _would_ they enjoy it? Logan would probably shy away from the animals, content to just observe them and not truly relax; he'd probably question Roman as to why he even brought him there in the first place. Patton would be speechless the whole time, an adorable grin on the father figure's face as he wanted to never leave the place. That would end up in him ignoring Roman and, more importantly, his duties to Thomas. Virgil would warm up to it, in due time, but he would always worry about the possibility of him accidentally hurting the fauna to the point that he'd say that the place was awful for his wellbeing. (...Not in those _exact_ words, sure, but the message would be all the same.)

All ended with them not _truly_ appreciating the world for what it has to offer. Not just that; they wouldn't appreciate _each other_.

He might be wrong; maybe, just _maybe_, they would all want to spend the day here together and talk about nonsense until the sun went down. No, they wouldn't stop there; they would continue even after the moon made its debut, as the scenery was _much_ more beautiful at night in Roman's opinion.

But that's just wishing for something that would never come true, wasn't it? Especially with the way things were now. He was still seen as...overdramatic, extra.

A nuisance.

\- _Ah, so that's what this is about._

He...felt like they didn't appreciate _him_ and _his_ way of thinking. Why couldn't they just _see_ things from his point of view?

And yet here he was, longing for their company. He was a glutton for pain, wasn't he?

As he continued to read aloud to the forest animals, a sad smile crossed his face.

In the end, he was still alone.


	2. King

_**Prompt 1: King**_

_/I own nothing, as always. Enjoy!_

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"_**But I was meant to rule this world; you'd best say goodbye. And now you're standing in my way? And now I need my - **_

_**I need my room to fly!"**_

_~The Evil King by NateWantsToBattle_

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" - And that's it for this video, so peace out guys, gals, and nonbinary pals!" As Thomas Sanders turned off the camera, he turned to his four sides with a raised eyebrow. "...I take it you all have something to say?"

"What was _that?_" Virgil scowled, crossing his arms while giving him something reminiscent to a death glare. "That video was a nightmare."

"I think it was fan-_tastic!_" Roman beamed, a happy smile on his face as his eyes shone with joy. "I already have the greatest ideas in mind that are _really_ gonna blow our viewers away!"

"You - You _will_ consult us first before doing anything drastic, right?" Logan spoke to the fanciful side, blinking in shock when Thomas instead answered.

"He doesn't need to, Logan. I think they're all awesome and as such should be allowed to be left as they are."

"Well, as long as we're happy with what we're doing I'm in!" Patton jumped in, his own cheerful smile on his face. It then became troubled, the makings of a frown starting to form. "But, even so...I can't help but feel that something isn't right."

"See?!" Virgil gestured wildly to Patton, a frustrated sigh leaving his lips. "It's not just what he said, either; you've been blatantly ignoring any concerns I have and diving recklessly into situations!"

"I agree with Virgil, Thomas." Logan piped up, watching the look of irritation that spread across Thomas' face with concern. "It is quite unlike you to _not_ listen to Virgil. Furthermore, Roman's behavior right now is more than worrisome."

"I don't see a problem with anything, guys." Roman defended their host, the smile still on his face nonetheless. "Thomas is making some great process in fulfilling his dreams! You guys should be happy for him, not restraining him!"

"_Not_ at what cost?"

The new voice startled the five, Patton quickly morphing from shock to happiness as Deceit popped into existence. Logan and Virgil immediately noticed how tired and weary the lying side looked, his cheek sporting a nasty bruise. Thomas looked concerned and was about to say something before seeming to change his mind and huffing.

"Hey, kiddo!" Patton's look of concern didn't go over Deceit's head. "What happened to you?"

"_Goodbye_, Patton." Deceit answered in turn before continuing. "Patton, Logan and Virgil are absolutely _wrong_. This _hasn't_ affected even me." He gestured to himself, giving an awkward smile that quickly morphed into pain. "As you _can't_ see, I am..._not_ a mess right now. As for _not_ the reason why - "

"You guys didn't even invite me to do a Sanders Sides video?!" Roman popped up next to...Roman, a pout on his lips as he placed his hands on his hips. "I _thought_ something fishy was going on when I was binge-watching _The Office_ for the tenth time and no one came to check up on me!" Once he took in their dumbfounded faces, he blinked in confusion. "Is something on my face? Also, who's this wannabe me?"

"This is what I was _not_ trying to say." Deceit then went rigid, eyes going wide as a low chuckle resonated throughout the living room. Thomas and the Sides turned towards the Roman on the right, who had evolved into full-blown laughter. His outfit changed into different colors; gone were the white and red that was Roman's trademark, replaced by black and blue. His eyes slightly dulled but gleamed with danger, a smirk curling the edges of his lips upwards. The side's hair became more swept to the side, almost completely covering his right eye. A royal blue cape, which wrapped loosely around his neck almost as if it was a scarf, billowed out behind him.

"Oh shit!" Virgil seemed to also come to a realization, Patton and Logan still completely in the dark. "Guys, think about it: Your confusion, my lack of influence over Thomas, Deceit's state, Thomas' reckless actions and his irritation when told otherwise. That's not Roman, it's - "

"You always ruin my fun, Virgil." The side levelled his gaze on the anxious side, who glared at him in turn.

Logan gasped (rather dramatically, according to Roman in the future) when the Roman on the right transformed, shouting his revelation. "PRIDE!"

"Pride…?" Patton was slightly confused. He had never met this Side before, but judging by the way Roman bristled with anger at the new side that he would be considered a Dark Side. That didn't mean that he couldn't be civil to him, though. "Um, well hiya! I'm Patton, Thomas' Morality!"

"I already know, Patton. I will not reveal my true name as of yet, but I am Pride, one of Thomas' Seven Deadly Sins." The side - Pride - chuckled in amusement, snapping his fingers. A pitch black crown appeared out of thin air, dropping into his hands shortly after. He placed it on top of his head, although it sat slightly lopsided. "I _was_ here the whole time, and none of you suspected a thing. Ingenious, on my part."

Deceit huffed and crossed his arms. Virgil knew exactly why he was pouting, and suppressed a smile in favor of letting a low growl escape him. "Get out."

"Are you...telling _me_ what to do?" Gone was Pride's good mood, his blue eyes piercing Virgil's soul. The room darkened slightly, and the Dark Side smirked. A weight settled in all of their chests, threatening to cut off their breathing entirely. "Amusing, really. You are talking to a _king_; it seems that you need to re-learn your place." He raised his hand, preparing to attack with Patton staring at him in horror, before a yawn broke through. The king covered his mouth as he finished, lowering his free arm before speaking.

"Consider yourself lucky that you're even alive right now, cretin. I will be back soon, after I take a rest." Pride vanished, and the room lightened. The remaining sides fell to their knees, free from the oppression that Pride carried with him.

Thomas blinked, and looked around in confusion before profusely apologizing. "What...Oh my god, guys I am _so_ sorry for everything I did to you! Are you all okay?"

"Peachy." Virgil snarked. Roman punched the ground, a snarl on his face.

"That...That..._faker!_" Logan pinched the bridge of his nose. He had a _lot_ to think about when he went back to his Room, and much more to prepare for. If they were to see Pride in the future - and they most certainly would - they needed countermeasures against his influence.

Patton, uncharacteristically, stayed quiet. While Pride seemed to converse with him in a normal fashion, he frankly didn't know what to think of the new side. Despite this, there was one thing he knew for certain:

He was terrifying.


	3. Courage Part 1

_/I don't own anything but the idea. Enjoy!_

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"_**I created a monster; a beast inside my brain.**_

_**With nowhere to go, I'm out on my own; my mind impaired…**_

_**Wake me from my nightmare!"**_

_~Nightmare by Set It Off_

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"Thomas, there's someone we would like you to meet."

Thomas screamed as he jumped from his position in bed, grabbing the nearest object - a flashlight - and raising it like a club. It took his brain a couple of seconds to catch up with reality, the YouTuber breathing out a sigh of relief once he turned the flashlight on and shined the light on Logan's face.

"Oh thank god, it's just you Logan." He paused, glancing at the time before narrowing his eyes at him. "...For being the Logical Side, why did _you_ wake my up at 3 o'clock? This is the _worst_ hour to wake me up at!"

3 a.m. was when _all_ the bad things happened! Demonic summonings, hauntings that escalated, people that broke into your house…

Creepy dolls that wanted to "play" with you when all you wanted to do was deliver some pizza to the resident of the house…

...He _really _should stop thinking about this kind of stuff.

"For some illogical reason, yes; it is." Logan looked slightly annoyed at the prospect before he continued. "Which is precisely why I decided to wake you up."

A _pop_ sounded next to him as Virgil appeared, hands shoved in his pockets and a grin on his face. "3 a.m., huh? My _favorite_ hour of the day."

"Careful Virge, you kinda sounded like Deceit right there." Thomas teased, Virgil making a face at him in turn. "So, who's this "we"?"

"Well...all of us, really." Virgil shrugged. He raised his hand, and only Patton appeared. The poor side was shaking, trying to plaster a smile on his face as he trembled.

"Hey Popstar, it'll be okay. If anything, _I'm _the one who should be freaking out right now." Virgil's nickname seemed to calm Patton down a bit, the father figure shakily thanking him in turn.

"Where are the others?" Logan asked, Patton responding after a couple of seconds.

"While Roman's the bravest, he also feeds Virgil's power, so he's freaking out. I tried to calm him down, but he...he…"

"Imagined all of the different scenarios in which we would die, didn't he?" Logan seemed to hit the nail right on the head. Patton nodded, wringing his hands.

"Once he did, he started to scare me because he mentioned..._spiders._"

Thomas shivered, running his hands up and down his arms. He agreed with Patton: spiders were Creepy Crawly Death Dealers, not matter how you looked at them.

"Looks like I gotta pull Princey out here with us." Virgil sighed before disappearing, leaving Logan to look at Patton.

"And where's Deceit?"

"Wait, why Deceit?" Thomas asked instead, causing the Logical Side to give a pointed look at him.

"Whenever you get scared, Thomas, you tell more lies than you have in an entire two _months_. I'd say out of all of us, Deceit gets scared quite easily. I don't know about Pride, but I am _not_ inviting him on this escapade." Logan _shivered_, leaving Thomas to only wonder how terrifying Pride was. "Anyways, since Deceit's power also grows, my influence diminishes. I would like to adjust the extreme to which my presence is limited, as I think it would also help you be better equipped in facing your fears."

"F-Fair point." Thomas noticed how _dark_ the room was, and it did not help to assuage his fears. "Can we get on with it? I'd very much like to be sleeping right now."

"In a minute, kiddo." Patton sat down next to Thomas, hugging him. "You looked like you needed a hug.

"Thanks, Patton." Thomas then saw the minute trembling of the moral side's limbs, turning to hug him tightly.

"You look like you need a hug, too." He clarified once Patton gave him a curious glance.

"Th-Thank you, Thomas." The two smiled shakily, slightly chuckling before another _pop_ sounded. The trio turned to face Deceit, who was still in his pajamas. _Actually_, Thomas realized, _Everyone is still in their pajamas._

"I _so_ look forward to this experience." The lying side snarked, securing his black beanie further down on his head. Patton managed a smile in his direction, to which he grimaced but waved. "Why the hell am I _not_ here?"

"Because you scare easily." Logan deadpanned, making Thomas laugh as Deceit spluttered and shot a retort his way.

Virgil and Roman rose up, looks of confusion crossing their faces as they saw the scene before them. Logan brought them all back by clearing his throat, ushering them all downstairs.

"Now that we have gathered, we need to go down into the living room in the Mindscape."

Once they sunk down and rose up in the room, Thomas was surprised to find it so dark. Virgil and Logan glanced at each other before Logan raised an eyebrow at the other. Virgil groaned, walking into the center of the room.

"As Logan said earlier, there's someone we would like you to meet, Thomas."

A gasp came from Roman. Soon, an excited smile spread across his face, and Deceit smirked at the implication. "Is it - ?!"

"Yes, Roman, it is." Logan snapped his fingers, and the lights turned on. There, sitting on the kitchen counter with one leg propped up, was another Side. His black biker jacket reflected the lights, a white and slightly ripped shirt being slightly covered by the blue bandana hanging from his neck. His black jeans ruffled as he moved, a lazy grin on his face once he stepped fully into view. Sunglasses, which covered his eyes, were moved to the top of his head as he waved.

"Hey guys, did you miss me?"

Patton tackled the other side into a hug, tears forming at the corner of his eyes. "It's been _years_, you know! I know you said that you'd be back after you went on your "journey", but - !"

"I know, Dad." The side patted his head as his grin turned apologetic. "I'm just sorry that it took so long."

Patton wiped his tears. "You're back, and that's all that matters." He let go of him, watching as the other walked over to Thomas and stuck out his hand for him to shake.

Thomas blinked at the hand, raising his own and grasping the other. "...Hi, I'm Thomas. It's nice to meet you, um…?"

"Nathan." The side said, a small smile settling on his face. "But, I'm more commonly known as Courage."

"Ohmygosh, it has been _too_ long Nathan!" Roman clasped the courageous side's shoulder, laughing giddily. "We should go on an adventure tomorrow, to celebrate your return!"

"How about a hangout day, since...y'know..._all_ of us want to catch up with him?" Virgil suggested, making the others nod.

"I have the perfect spot, you guys! You'll love it!" Roman agreed readily. Nathan glanced at Deceit, raising an eyebrow.

"Dee's here, too? I thought you guys were on bad terms…" Deceit huffed and crossed his arms while Patton smiled.

"There's a _lot_ you missed." Logan sighed in exasperation, snapping his fingers to bring their attention back to him.

"Have you all forgotten _why_ we're here? Despite celebrating Nathan's return, we need to help Thomas with his fears. For that, we're travelling to The Night."

"The Night?" Thomas echoed. Logan nodded.

"That's right, The Night. It's short for The Nightmare, which is comprised of all of your fears."

"Oh. _Great_." Thomas grumbled, Deceit nodding his agreement. Logan set to work, drawing what seemed to be runes in the air before a hole of pitch blackness formed on the wall opposite to them. There was no sound from it, which unnerved Thomas and made him wish that he had more than just a flashlight on him.

"Oh, and we need one more person if we're going into The Night." Virgil said before waving his hand. Another Side popped into existence, his sunglasses also reflecting off of the light. Actually, he looked _very_ familiar…

"Remy!" Thomas said as his eyes widened. Remy turned towards him, a grin on his face as he sipped his mocha.

" 'Sup, bitches? I'm here to make sure that you don't get stuck in The Night for all of eternity." The side finished his drink and threw it into the trash, immediately returning with another. "If any of you start for feel nauseous, dizzy, or tired, let me know. I can totally make it go away, okay babes?"

"Now that we're all here, let's get going!" The courageous side urged, Patton nodding vigorously as Roman laughed. The fanciful side pulled out his katana from its sheath, pointing it at the void.

"A new trial awaits us, dear friends, and we shall conquer it!"

With that, they departed into The Night…

Unaware of the horrors they'll face.

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_/Hey guys, this prompt will be multi-chaptered since I have a _lot _in mind for it. See you next time!_


End file.
